commonwealth

PM flags citizenship changes

spouse of scouse

Bit more detail:

Migrants will face a tougher citizenship test which will assess their commitment to Australia and their attitudes to religious freedom and gender equality.

Those with a history of family violence or organised crime could also be barred from citizenship.

Applicants will be asked to demonstrate that they have integrated into Australian society, for example by joining clubs or by providing evidence that they are employed and their children are in school.

A more stringent English language test will also be introduce, which will include "reading, writing and listening" components.

Australian citizenship law changes mean migrants will face tougher tests - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

xizzles

I say it's long overdue - and I'm happy for the changes. Keep the rubbish out, and the jewels in.

bourbon-biscuit

On a personal note, WAHHHH!

If they make time with PR living in Australia 4 years and not the 1 it currently is then I have wasted a year. For most people this won't matter ... but we're supporting two (about to be three) people in uni right now.

I wonder if it'll apply to Kiwis.

mavios

It is long overdue for sure.. I wonder when it will be implemented.
on the media release page it does say this:
http://www.minister.border.gov.au/pe...tizenship.aspx

moneypenny20

Not sure in reality that it will affect that many. It just sounds good.

old.sparkles

It will affect those who came on temporary visas first, as now need 4 years as PR (rather than 4 years residence, 1 of which had to be PR).

The language requirements are most likely to affect family members from non-English speaking countries, thinking parents / grandparents / etc. and also some refugees.

But mostly very little change.

Listening to the politicians though, and some of the news reporters, I did get the impression that they either do not know their own process, or were being deliberately misleading.

xizzles

Smoke & mirrors. Cloak & dagger.

The art and craft by which every politician swears.

moneypenny20

Exactly. Much like the 457 'changes that aren't really other the number'.

k974

A friend lodged a citizenship application today at 2pm, has been PR for 15 months , 3 yrs on 457 before that.

Any thoughts on whether it will comply or be assessed on new rules? If new rules how long of the 4 years on PR will they have to be in the country ?

Thanks

spouse of scouse

This, from yesterday's ABC News article I linked to above:
The Coalition will have to pass the changes through Parliament but if they do, those who apply for citizenship from today will be subject to the new rules.

Re your other question, your guess is as good as anyone's.

k974

He just spent 2.5hrs on the phone to them, the guy said his supervisor reckons it will come in from the dates its passed. i.e 1st June onwards or whatever, that contradicts most of what is online tho.


you would think being reasonable people on the current process could follow it through it would apply to any new PR's. They effectively ran campaigns to bring people into the country and disclosed the pathway to citizenship changing it midway through seems unreasonable.

spouse of scouse

I agree, the new legislation shouldn't be retrospective. All those already on a defined path should be permitted to follow that path. Best of luck to your friend.

Croker

Oh, if only! I'm really disappointed in today's announcement; I came to Australia on a PMV in October 2014, applied as a spouse in April 2016, and was recently granted my 820 at the end of February this year. So, as it stands, I won't get PR until April 2018 at the earliest.

If these proposed changes go through, I'll then be unable to apply for citizenship until April 2022 (again, at the earliest). That, to me, is excessive - an almost 8 year route to citizenship (longer, when you factor in application processing times)? Under the rules that prevailed until yesterday, I would be a citizen in half that time.

The irony here for me, personally, is that my job in the UK (for almost 15 years, in fact) was...immigration officer A job I can't actually do in Australia at this point because I'm not a citizen - and which I won't be able to apply for at any time in the near future.

I spent almost my entire first year here looking for work, and didn't have much joy - I had some interviews, at least one of which I mysteriously lost out on at the last minute (and which I'm convinced was down to my immigration status), but an awful lot of jobs were advertised with a blanket "Permanent residents or Australian Citizens only". The positions for which I had the most experience were even worse, usually going as far as saying "you must be an Australian Citizen or immediately eligible to become one in order to apply".

Thankfully, I do now have a job, because an employer was far-sighted enough to look at more than just my immigration status when I applied, but I spent a pretty miserable year chasing everything I could. Although things are very positive at my workplace, and I've already had a contract extension, the worry is that the time comes when an extension isn't possible. What then?

Ultimately, shutting people out from citizenship for such a long-period is counter-productive. For those already in Australia, you're locking them out from the complete range of employment opportunities (thus making it more likely they may need some form of government support). You're also shutting them out from deeper engagement with Australian society, as they can't vote. For those considering coming to Australia, and who have skills the country urgently need, do you really want your pitch to be "Hey, come on over, we really want you, but bear in mind it could take you the best part of a decade to become an Australian citizen"?

Apologies for the rant, but this is so wrong-headed it's hard to know where to begin. The worst part is that I expect some horse-trading to take place to get these changes through parliament, but I suspect getting this element amended will be seen as low priority, therefore will probably remain intact. Gutted

garyp

Even Malcolm doesn't know what he's talking about just seen this and p____d myself laughing

https://mobile.twitter.com/mattdegro...975040/video/1